Consumers are continuing to experience eased retail prices of maize flour, the main staple; following the decline of the commodities’ wholesale prices, thanks to the new harvests season.

Data by the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) and the ministry of industry and trade show that the commodity’s wholesale price dropped by  nearly 50 percent  annually to 70,468/- per 100 kilogramme during the end of March this year, the sharpest decrease to be recorded over the last three years.

During the end of March 2023, the report shows that the wholesale price of maize recorded the decline of 25 percent, before climbing by 115 percent between July and November 2022.

The sharp decrease of the commodity, which is mainly consumed by both rural and urban areas, resulted from the government’s efforts to increased production, which boosted supplies in different markets.

However, ongoing rains and floods, recorded in different areas of the country, which have also destroyed roads infrastructure from maize producing regions, continue to challenge supply logistics of the commodity to different area, which were previously facing the commodity’s shortages.

The markets survey in Dar es Salaam have shown that the slowdown of  wholesale maize prices has also trickled down the commodity’s retail price to at least 1,300/- per kilogramme, from 2,000/- recorded between July 2022 and March 2023.

The increase of maize price during last year caused by shortages of supply and increased demands for exports markets, specifically Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Zambia.

Maize production in Tanzania will increase to 6.1 million tonnes in the 2023-24 marketing year, as farmers respond to higher prices for the grain, but expensive fertilizer and armyworm outbreaks likely will keep it below historically average harvests, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Drought-related production shortfalls in 2022-23 more than doubled maize prices to $51.40 per 100 kilograms (kg) in December 2022, compared to $25 per 100 kg during the same month in 2021. 

Area harvested is projected to increase from 4 million hectares to 4.2 million as more farmers make the move to maize. 

Poor yields are expected to hamper 2023-24 output, USDA notes.

However, USDA reported that yields are anticipated to be negatively affected by an outbreak of fall armyworm in most corn-producing regions and limited access to subsidized fertilizer, as the retail fertilizer prices have increased due to disruptions associated with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In December last year, the government initiated the second phase of its maize purchasing program, offering a rate of 700/- (US$2.90) per kilogram in order to stabilize the maize market and ensure food security. 

This price significantly surpassed the previous market rate of 500/-, representing a substantial boost for maize farmers.

The first phase, which started in June 2023 and concluded in December of the same year, witnessed the government disbursing a total of 194bn/- (US$80 million) to maize producers across the country. 

Farmers in seven key regions — Makambako, Sumbawanga, Mpanda, Songwe, Babati, Songea, and Dodoma —sell their maize at government-operated purchasing centers, to significantly help farmers who have been struggling with low market prices.